I'm
so excited to share this lovely wedding of my beautiful friend. She was married
about a month ago in Bolinas,
CA, to the most wonderful man,
and I couldn't be happier for both of them. Gabe and I have been friends since
our teens, and many of my happiest "single" memories include her.
Gabe often used to visit me at the flower shop I worked at in Oakland, and I loved making her bouquets, so
it was fitting that I was on board for her special day. The thing about Gabe is
that she has very definite tastes, and an incredibly specific style, so
figuring out her wedding flowers wasn't too difficult. I also had the luck of
her having worked at Chez Panisse for
years now, and because of that, she's fully versed in the concept of
seasonality, and getting whatever is best at market the day of. So, not only
was this wedding a joy to design for, it was also completely relaxed. I had a
sense of freedom that always makes for better design. (Photos by me and Phyllis Christopher Photography - I will do my best to specifically delineate each one. My website will be updated by week end with the correct credits given.) The photos above are by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
Along with having incredible personal style, Gabe is also a fashion designer and seamstress. She designed and
constructed this dress, and it was crazy beautiful. She has this way of
incorporating vintage deco, and making it completely accessible to current
tastes. The dress had so much fluid movement, fit her body type perfectly, and
was this amazing shade of softened butter-cream that complemented her skin tone
and softened the overall look, making her appear like a bridal goddess. I'm
sure I sound over the top, but you have to see it in person. I'm not
exaggerating. I always knew she was good at her art, but she took it to the
next level with this dress. Her business, Gastah Designs, is based in the San
Francisco Bay Area, although she travels for her custom line. She is even the
personal seamstress to Alice
Waters. She's an amazing talent; you should seriously consider hiring her
to design your wedding dress. The photos above are by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
An old buckeye tree was the focal point for the
ceremony. Gabe and I discussed how to embellish the tree, but not take away
from its natural beauty. I came up with dressing it with a seeded eucalyptus
and variegated pittosporum garland, and finishing it off with the flowers used
in the rest of the event. Because I was told the tree would have lost its
leaves by the wedding, and that it was covered in lichen, which is a greyish
green, I thought a euc and pitt garland would be perfect. The photos above are by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
The wedding was held at Briarcombe (you can see the main house in the
background), which is a beautiful Arts and Crafts (with Asian influences) home
and estate in Bolinas, CA. It is truly an amazing place for a
wedding. There are multiple houses on the grounds for family to stay, as well
as English gardens to walk through, and a beautiful old buckeye tree to get
married under. I read the word "magical" a lot when looking up
Briarcombe, and that is a great word to describe it. It really does have this
magical quality to it. My friends and I got to sit and watch the moon rise and
see the fruit bats come alive, and it was so peaceful and lovely. I wish I
could have stayed all weekend. I raced back to my boy in Socal the next day,
but this was definitely one of the best weddings I've been to. The photos above are by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
The photo above is by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
The color scheme for the wedding was to be
strong: yellows, reds, oranges, and whatever variation in-between. The groom's
(Zack - such a great guy. Love him!) dad is Japanese, and Gabe wanted to give a
nod to his heritage. So we included oncidium orchids into the mainly garden mix
of dahlias, jasmine (from Gabe and Zack's yard), garden roses, and ferns. The
orchids and vines also gave an organic and gestural quality to the arrangements
that was important to Gabe.
The photo above is by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
The reception was all about food! Zack is an
exceptional chef and he and Gabe actually met at Chez Panisse when he was in
the kitchen. He has since left and has worked in some amazing kitchens in the East Bay.
Much of their lives together is about good food, cooked beautifully, and they
wanted their wedding to reflect that. The guests were treated to the most
incredible dinner, all done by Chez chefs. Because food was such a focus, and
the tables were set family style, I had to keep the reception flowers on the
more minimal side. Now, I'm not a minimalist, and this was one of my best friends’
weddings, so I did a little bit more on half of the tables, and kept the other
half with just bud vases. There was some worry as I was installing, that everything
wouldn't fit, but I made it fit. Gabe was really happy with the final product,
and the larger arrangement gave the event a more cohesive feel, so it worked
out!
The photos above are by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
The double photos above and the rest below are by Phyllis Christopher Photography.
I was so lucky to have one of my best friends help me with the install of this wedding. Peter St. Lawrence and I have been friends since our college years and I literally miss him during every event. He's an amazing floral designer, and that's not even what he's best at. He's an incredible ceramicist and sculptor, created and now runs (with his partners) one of the most prominent fine art galleries in Oakland - FM, and is currently working as an interior designer for a new restaurant about to open in Oakland. Sometimes I feel like, what in the world, how are we not closer while expanding our businesses? But friendships like ours stand the test of time. We're just a phone call away when we want to share something new and exciting about our careers. A (kind of) quick drive when I need a strong drink and a shit talking session, and an email when I have to show him some new crazy flower species. Oh, and we're also garter and bouquet toss winners. Lol...
I think Loriel was telling me she was going to take me down here... And I just laughed.
I wish Gabe and Zack a beautiful life full of wonderful experiences, great food, friends and family, and while you're at, maybe a couple of kids. Ha! ;-) I love you both and am so happy to have been part of this amazing day. So so many x's and o's to you and your families.
